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The ADN Connection, May/June 1994 The A3C Connection
May/June 1994 Contents The Times They Are A-Changin' Part 2 Reach Out and Finger Someone ADN Microcomputer Services Network Computing at UIC (a note from our director) Discussions with the Networked World
Got a computer-related acronym? The Electronic Library: Online Search of Journals and Magazines Class Scheduling Assistant Up-to-the-Minute Course Information in Gopher Client Server Software: How Gopher Works About the ADN Connection

The Electronic Library: Online Search of Journals and Magazines

  [This article explains how to use IBIS while logged onto ADN CMS. But now, it's even easier; if you have a UIC library patron id (usually your social security number), you can use IBIS from anywhere on the World Wide Web. Take a look at the UIC library's WWW home page at the URL http://www.uic.edu/depts/lib/. --Ed.]
 
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By hand, bibliographic searches are very tedious. But fortunately online bibliographic searches involving hundreds of journals and magazines are brought to the UIC community by IBIS, the Illinois Bibliographic Information Service. It's remarkably easy to use: each screen in IBIS has instructions telling you what to do next, and usually more help is available for the asking. IBIS is available from any CMS account, whether you are connected on campus or through a dial-up connection, and from special terminals in the Library.

IBIS is a collection of databases: Current Contents, which references journals in many subjects; ERIC, which specializes in education and related topics; PsycINFO, on psychology; and the W. H. Wilson indexes, which includes nine indices: Reader's Guide Abstracts (popular magazines), and indices in art, literature, social sciences, humanities, business periodicals, general science, biology and agriculture, and applied science and technology.

 

What do you need to know to use IBIS? Not much!
  • To enter IBIS from CMS, enter: IBIS

    • (or enter: LIBRARY and select "IBIS" from the displayed menu).
  • The instructions on each screen should give you all the information you need to proceed, but to get additional help, type: H

    • and press Enter. (Type the command by the command prompt to get general help or in any field on the screen to get help with that field.) Press Enter to return to IBIS from a help screen; but if that doesn't work, try entering: Q (Quit).
  • Some common and useful IBIS commands are:
    • B
    to return to the previous screen
    Q
    to quit the current task; where you end up varies, but you will still be in IBIS
    X
    to leave IBIS entirely
  • If  More... or  Holding appears in the lower right corner of your screen while you are using IBIS, you need to CLEAR your screen to return to IBIS. Often, you do this by pressing the gray plus key ("+") on the numeric keypad at the right of your keyboard.


The instructions above give you all you need to know to begin to use IBIS. Sound easy? It is! Let's search for articles on humpback whales with IBIS:

  • Logon to CMS.
  • Enter: LIBRARY

    • then select "IBIS" from the menu.
  • After reading each of the two introductory screens, press Enter to proceed.
  • Read the "Welcome to IBIS" screen, then enter: C
  • If it's been a while since you've used IBIS, enter: H

    • on the "IBIS Database Menu" screen for a description of the available databases. The second screen of this help (press Enter to display it) lists subject categories and suggests the database(s) to use for them.
  • We want "Life Sciences"; the help suggests Current Contents and Reader's Guide Abstracts. We want scientific rather than popular references, so we'll search Current Contents first.
  • Enter: Q

    • to get back to the IBIS Database Menu.
  • Enter: 1

    • to select Current Contents.
  • Enter: 5

    • to select Life Sciences.
  • Again if it's been a while since you've used IBIS, it's a good idea to look at the help for this screen; enter: H

    • to display the help and press Enter to return to the search screen.
  • To search for items which have the string "humpback" adjacent to the string "whales", enter: humpback adj whales
  • Today there are 12 matches. You can browse through them online (enter D), print them on a convenient printer (enter: P ), or send them to yourself by electronic mail (enter: E  then choose "Option 2" to have the information sent to you as an electronic note). Or do all three if you want.
  • Let's print a copy. Enter: P

    • .On the Printing Search Results screen, TAB to "Record #". Type ALL
    if you want to print all the results, or a number or range of numbers as it suggests. TAB to "Comment" and type a comment if you wish. Press Enter to begin the print.
  • You have to type a number of things on the following screen; don't press Enter until you finish. First, type: X

    • to select Option 1, printing on the ADN. If you're not using IBIS from the Library, you'll probably want to TAB to the printer name (LIB1444) and type over it the name of a more convenient printer (building initials followed by the room number, such as SEL2249 for the printer in Room 2249 in SEL). TAB to "Userid on selected Network", type the userid of your ADN/CMS account, then press TAB and type its password. (The password will not display.) When you're finished, press Enter to print.
  • To leave IBIS, enter: X

    • on any IBIS screen.
Are you a Star Trek fan? For amusement, you might want to select the Wilson databases (enter: 4 on the IBIS Database screen), then enter: 8 to select Reader's Guide Abstracts.
Search for: 
(humpback adj whale) and trek
This search tells IBIS to search for all items which have "humpback" and "whale" near each other, limiting the search to items including the word "trek."

Want to know more? The Library will help. The Library has online information on IBIS and the other Library systems in its LIBINFO utility on CMS (enter: LIBRARY then select "Libinfo" from the menu) or just ask them.

Comments are appreciated; send them to
Judith Grobe Sachs, judygs@uic.edu
  
The ADN Connection, May/June 1994 Previous:  Got a computer-related acronym? Next:  Class Scheduling Assistant

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